I begin a brief historical writing about what happened in December ‘89. Because of its length this writing will be divided into 3 episodes.

17 years ago, in 16-22 December 1989 Romanian young people (but not only) were fighting for freedom, for escaping from the communism. The fact, known as the ‘89 Revolution (Revolutia din ‘89) started in Timisoara, my home city.

How we reached there?

Episode 1:

In May 1989, the name of Tokes was for the first time heard on Radio Budapest; it was a discussion about the student’s theater “Thalia”. His name will be heard many times from then, being in the public attention of Hungarian press and television. He was a Hungarian Reformed pastor in Timisoara. By June ‘89 the first interview of Laszlo Tokes appeared on the show Panorama, at TV Budapest.

23rd November, a group of workers from Uzinele Mecanice Timisoara tries to hold up the work and to start a social revolt, in the day with the 14th PCR (Romanian Communist Party) congress. It did not succeed.

10th December: Tokes announce in his church that the communists are forcing him to move from this house, and he’ll be evicted on December 15th. He also asks for as much witness as he can get to join him when he’ll be evicted.

On 15 of December, early in the morning, in front of his house there are about 20 people. Until the noun, their number is double, just to protect him from harassment and eviction. Later in that day a person from communism security (a kind of police-man) gets beaten and things are starting to get messed-up. In the evening the crowd sings (on a low voice) “Romanian, wake up” (“Deşteaptă-te române” – song that will become the revolution’s motto, and later on the anthem.)

In 16 of December, the demonstration from the front of Tokes’ house grows. Many passers-by, including religious Romanian students, unaware of the details and having been told by the pastor’s supporters that this was yet another attempt of the communist regime to restrict religious freedom, spontaneously joined in. It became a fact that manifestations are going to expand to the whole city of Timisoara. In that day I was going to a friend that stays close to that place, I was almost 5 years old, and I was shocked of seeing such a large crowd. I also noticed many people just standing there surrounding the manifestants, as if they were watching the whole event. I learned that they were communist security-men when I came back home and I saw them making arrestments. As it became clear that the crowd would not disperse, the mayor, Petre MoÅ£, made remarks suggesting that he had overturned the decision to evict Tokes. Meanwhile, the crowd had grown impatient— and since Petre MoÅ£ declined to confirm his statement against the planned eviction in writing, the crowd was getting a real anti-political tint.

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